1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a golf swing improvement device.
In golf as in many other activities, one important key to success is to repeat an activity a sufficiently large number of times that the particular activity becomes automatic. This is the principle underlying most devices for helping a person to improve his or her golf swing. If a person can be caused to repeat a good golf swing a large number of times, e.g. several thousand times, the swing becomes automatic.
2. Discussions of the Prior Art
Because of the popularity of golf, many attempts have been made to assist neophytes and seasoned players to improve their swing. The results of such attempts are well documented in patent literature.
In this association, reference is made to Canadian Patent No. 708,502, issued to M. H. Austin et al; U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,103,502, issued to J. W. L. Webster on Dec. 28, 1937; 2,773,691, issued to F. E. Redfield on Dec. 11, 1956; 2,893,736, issued to J. M. Tesi on Jul. 7, 1959; 3,188,090, issued to L. E. Job on Jun. 8, 1965; 3,442,513, issued to G. F. Fisher on May 6, 1969; 3,595,583, issued to J. Oppenheimer on Jul. 27, 1971; 3,679,214, issued to J. D. Boyte, on Jul. 25, 1972; 4,399,994, issued to J. Hourihan, on Aug. 23, 1983; and 5,149,099 issued to D. L. Radakovich, on Sep. 22, 1992.
While the apparatuses described in the above listed patents differ in terms of complexity the underlying theme in each case is to cause a golfer to repeat a good swing until it becomes automatic.
At this point, it is worthwhile briefly describing a good golf swing (forget about putting, which is an art in itself). The following description is for a right-handed player. When setting up to strike a golf ball, the correct body posture is that the knees are slightly flexed to allow free movement of leg muscles. The feet are approximately shoulder width apart, and body weight is distributed evenly between both feet and should be concentrated at the balls of the feet. The upper torso is bent forward from the hips so that the arms hang freely from the shoulders. The club is gripped with the left hand uppermost on the club grip, and the thumb extending straight along the top of the club grip. The club grip should be under the pad at the bottom of the palm and along the base of the fingers where they meet the palm. The back of the left hand should face the target.
The right hand is below the left on the club grip with the little finger either overlapped or interlocked with the index finger of the left hand. Because the right hand is lower on the club, the right shoulder is lower by a like amount. The shoulders, hips and feet should be parallel or square to the target line. The right knee should be bent slightly inward so that the weight on the right foot is slightly toward the inside edge of the ball of the foot. The left foot should be turned toward the target 20.degree.-30.degree..
The ball should be placed in line with the heel or instep of the left foot at a distance sufficient that the face of the club is directly behind the ball and perpendicular or square to the intended target line.
The club should be taken back from the ball in such a manner that the body revolves around a stationary spine. This calls for a one-piece takeaway which means simply that the ankles, knees, hips, shoulders and arms start to move simultaneously. Starting from the bottom, the left foot and ankle roll inwardly toward the ball position. The left knee moves inwardly until it is back to the ball position or slightly behind it. The hips rotate approximately 45.degree., the shoulders turn 90.degree., the arms rise to above shoulder level. When the club reaches about waist height, the wrists begin to cock so that by the time they are fully cocked, the club is over the right shoulder with the head end of the club pointed toward the target, the toe of the club is pointed at the ground and the shaft of the club is parallel to the target line and to the ground. As the arms are raised, the left arm must remain relatively straight (but not stiff) while the right arm bends at the elbow and stays close to the right side. The forearms also roll over each other so that the right palm is partially supinated. During all this the head is tilted slightly to the right and remains behind the ball. The chin must be kept high enough to allow the shoulders to be passed under it, and yet the eyes must be kept on the back of the ball. All of this should be done in a slow deliberate movement. Care should be taken that the left heel does not rise off the ground and the weight transferred to the right foot remains more to the inside of the right foot. The result of all this is two-fold. First, the body is wound like a spring and has tremendous stored energy in it. Secondly, the club is in perfect position to begin the downswing and follow through.
Basically the downswing is exactly opposite to the backswing. Everything rotates about a stationary spine, and it is started very slowly. Once again, the ankles and knees start the downswing, the hips turn back to square, the shoulders come back to square, the arms come back to square and the club comes back to square. By the time the golfer gets back to impact position, all of the stored energy in the body at the top of the backswing has been released and the club head is accelerating through the ball hit. The speed is such that it carries the club through the impact position while still accelerating. The club continues to follow through until it wraps around the left shoulder with the hands as high or higher than they were at the top of the backswing.
If executed properly, the golf swing starts slowly on the backswing, travels along the target line for about a foot and then starts to describe an arc inside the target line. Meanwhile, the body weight shifts from being equally distributed on both feet to almost entirely on the right foot. On the downswing, the swing starts slowly once again with the club describing an arc inside the target line, the weight shifting back toward the center, and the club head gathers speed as the stored energy from the wound position of the body begins to be released. About one foot behind the ball, the club squares and remains so travelling down the target line until about six to eight inches after impact. Also at impact, the body weight has shifted to slightly more on the left foot and continues to shift until almost all of the weight is on the left foot at the top of the follow through. The right foot has risen so that it merely aids acceleration through impact ensuring more power. The arms, meanwhile, have returned to address position at impact and the arms have started to roll over each other until the right hand is pronated at the top of the follow through. At impact both arms are straight. After impact, the left arm begins to fold and allows the club to start describing an arc inside the target line once again. The result of all these things being done right is that it results in a relatively low powerful draw with overspin which produces extra roll. In other words, it results in a long straight shot. If all of these things are done correctly the butt end of the golf club remains pointed at the golfer's body or the spine.
Approximately ten years ago the most popular teaching method for the professionals was to ask the golfer to keep the butt end of the club within the so-called power triangle. The so-called "power triangle" is the triangle described by the line of the shoulders and the arms as they hold the club at address position. The exact centre of the triangle is the spine. The spine is directly behind the breastbone. One basic problem with many of the devices described in the above listed patents is that they do not address these facts. Moreover, many existing golf swing aids are unduly complicated and consequently expensive. In the opinion of the inventor, the device coming closest to offering a solution to the problem is that disclosed by the above-mentioned Canadian patent (Austin et al). However, there are several drawbacks to the Austin et al device, including the fact that there are several angles between the elements of the device resulting in a somewhat complicated structure, and there are certain critical limitations on the movement of the elements in the Austin et al device because of the particular joint structures.